‘Inside Out 2’ has biggest opening weekend of 2024 with $155 million

This image released by Disney/Pixar shows, from left, Joy, voiced by Amy Poehler, background left, Anger, voiced by Lewis Black, Disgust, voiced by Liza Lapira, Envy, voiced by Ayo Edebiri, and Anxiety, voiced by Maya Hawke, in a scene from “Inside Out 2.” (Disney/Pixar via AP)

LOS ANGELES – `Inside Out 2” breathed some life into a downbeat year at the box office, debuting with $155 million for the best opening weekend of any film this year, according to industry estimates released Sunday.

Pixar’s sequel to its 2015 hit deals with the inner thoughts and emotions of a teenage girl, and features the voices of Kensington Tallman, Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan, Tony Hale and Maya Hawke among others.

Its $155 million total is the second-best North American opening for an animated film, trailing only “Incredibles 2,” another Pixar film, which grossed $182.6 million in its opening weekend in 2018.

“Bad Boys: Ride or Die” took in $33 million, one week after opening in first place, Comscore reported.

“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’‘ was third with $5.2 million Friday through Sunday in its sixth weekend in theaters.

“The Garfield Movie” was fourth with $5 million in its fourth week, followed by “The Watchers” with $3.6 million in its second week.

Rounding out the top 10 domestic releases, as estimated by Comscore, were “IF” ($3.4 million), “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” ($2.4 million), “The Fall Guy” ($1.5 million), “The Strangers: Chapter 1” ($760,000) and “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” ($632,910).

“Inside Out 2” is the second-highest opening weekend in Pixar’s 29 years of making films and the second-biggest animated opening ever (behind only the $182.7 million launch of “Incredibles 2” in 2018). It’s also the biggest of 2024, and since “Barbie.”

With an estimated $140 million from international showings, “Inside Out 2” had a staggering, and record-breaking, $295 million global start.

Kelsey Mann directed “Inside Out 2,” which picks up with Riley as she turns 13. That means the arrival of new emotions like Anxiety (Maya Hawke) and Envy ( Ayo Edebiri ) to Joy’s (Amy Poehler) party. It got glowing reviews from critics (92% on Rotten Tomatoes) and polled audiences who gave it an A CinemaScore, suggesting that this won’t be a first-weekend wonder. With kids out of school and an open market until “Despicable Me 4” enters the ring over the Fourth of July, “Inside Out 2” is just getting started. (With CNS report)

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